Minimal reactivation of Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus by corticosteroids in latently infected B cell lines.

Corticosteroid use in transplant recipients increases the incidence and severity of Kaposi's sarcoma (KS), a disease associated with KS-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) infection. Recently, the prototypic corticosteroid, hydrocortisone, was shown to directly induce lytic cycle reactivation of KSHV in latently-infected BCBL-1 cells. The purpose of this study was to examine this phenomenon in further detail. After incubation with dexamethasone (